State of the Nation Address

Speeches from 1936-2011

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer

1936-1941

"The present system of taxation in the Philippines is a source of the greatest injustice from which our people suffer. It may properly be said that our burdens of taxation rest most heavily upon the masses, and very lightly upon the rich. Bearing in mind the income of the rich as compared to the earnings of the labouring class, it is a fact that the richer the taxpayer the less he contributes proportionately to the maintenance of the Government.”
1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941

1945

"It has been a long lapse of time since that day in November, 1941, when you were elected, to this day when you gather in your first session. We can hardly recognize our country after the cataclysm that has engulfed it. The war has left its livid scars everywhere—on our buildings as well as on men’s souls. Probably nothing can more starkly summarize our present plight than the fact that the Executive and Legislative branches of our Government have to meet today in a borrowed house because our Legislative Building is a heap of rubble and ashes, mute witness to the savage desperation of the beaten enemy.”

1946-1948

"I cannot report that our crisis is past. Such a claim would be obviously false. I shall speak in some detail of our still critical condition, and of the heroic efforts which are yet required for national success. What I bring is a message of hope and good cheer in this: we have gathered our forces, organized them and laid out our battle plans. We are no longer in disorganized flight. We have won initial victories on many fronts. We have every reason to believe that success can be ours.” 1946 | 1947 | 1948

1949-1953

"Our health services have continued to expand with increasing efficiency. The general health condition all over the country has been excellent, and the death rate has materially diminished, while the birth rate has substantially increased. In my travels all over the country, I have seen the people and the children better dressed and looking more healthy. The rehabilitation of small homes has made rapid strides, and the Government has not slackened in its efforts to remove the slums still in evidence in the thickly populated centers.” 1949 | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953

1954-1957

"Today, there is a new spirit of confidence in our land.
If this Administration can claim any outstanding achievement during the past year, it is the restoration of national self-respect and the revival of the people’s faith in the democratic way of life. Our people and their Government are now as one, jointly engaged in the grand enterprise of securing for this country the fullness of freedom and prosperity.
” 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957

1958-1961

In the exercise of their sovereign prerogatives, our people have entrusted to us the responsibility of administering the affairs of the nation. As Congress opens today the legislative phase of our joint trusteeship, I have come to counsel with you in accordance with the Constitution’s mandate. I am confident that, guided by the Infinite Wisdom, we shall prove equal to the people’s expectations, and live up to our solemn commitments to them." 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961

1962-1965

"We must begin with the fundamental act of casting a scrutinizing glance at the state of our way of life. It has become a truism that the Filipino way of life consists of three minimum elements, namely, the system of freedom, the love for peace and the sustenance of the rule of law. As long as these essential ingredients of Filipinism are safeguarded, the country, whatever its problems, is safe and the future of our posterity is secure.
” 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965

1966-1985

"The past year bears witness to our combined resolve and determination to be master of the crisis, and not its victim.
We have decisively stopped the slide of our economic fortunes, and restored them to health and renewed activity. Against every forecast of collapse made by so many, we have turned the odds in our favor and set a course towards recovery that is without parallel among nations similarly embattled.
We have demonstrated the efficacy of our democratic institutions and processes, in ensuring national stability and in framing policies and programs to meet the tide of crisis in our midst. The elections that brought this Parliament into being and the inaugural session of this assembly exemplify our response at this end.
” 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970| 1971| 1972
| 1973| 1974| 1975| 1976| 1977| 1978| 1979| 1980| 1981| 1982| 1983| 1984| 1985

1987-1991

"Fifteen years ago, in this season of the year, my hus¬band stood in the Senate and delivered what turned out to be the valedictory of Philippine democracy. He exposed the conspiracy to place the country under martial law, dissolve the Congress and set the stage for the unremitting plunder of our patrimony, and the degradation of our great name and honor.
The dictatorship’s last mockery of democracy was committed in this hall, where the loser was proclaimed winner of the Snap Election. Today I join you in rededicat¬ing this hall to true democracy.
” 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991

1992-1997

"We have come a long way in stabilizing prices. Inflation is down, from 18.7% in 1991 to 4.6% this June. And this rate is well within the ASEAN norm, and We will remain well within single-digit in 1997. In 1992 our exports increased by only 4.3% compared to their value in 1991. By 1996 our exports were expanding by 23.9% over those of the previous year.
” 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995| 1996| 1997

1998-2000

"Mindanao has traditionally been called the Land of Promise. This romantic name has always been a one-way affair. The rest of the country has always expected Mindanao to fulfill its promises to them. It is now time for the rest of the country to fulfill its promises to Mindanao. We should now convert Mindanao into the Land of Fulfillment.” 1998 | 1999 | 2000

2004-2009

"My responsibility as President is to take care to solve the problems we are facing now and to provide a vision and direction for how our nation should advance in the future. Many in this great hall live privileged lives and exert great influence in public affairs. I am accessible to you, but I spend time every day with the underprivileged and under represented who cannot get a grip on their lives in the daily, all-consuming struggle to make ends meet.
” 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008| 2009